Improvement in apparatus for cleansing the hulls of vessels



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

c. FIELDER. Apparatus for Cleansing the Hulls of Vessels.

No. 205,791. Patented July 9,1878.

'JIHIN NFHERS. PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON. D C.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I 0. FIE'LDER. Apparatus for Cleansing the Hulls o'fVessels.

No. 205,791. Patented luly 9,1878;

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Q5 13. Ja -22:: %&/7/7/C761#7M N.FETERS, PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON.D C

nrrnn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES FIELDER, OF PLUMSTEAD, ENGLAND.

IMPROVEMENT IN APPARATUS FOR CLEANSING THE HULLS 0F VESSELS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 205,791, dated July 9,1878; application filed April 17, 1878.

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that 1, CHARLES FIELDER, of Plumstead, in the county ofKent, England, have invented Improvements in Apparatus for Cleansing theHulls of Vessels and other Submerged Structures, of which the followingis a specification:

This invention relates to' improvements in apparatus for cleansing thehulls of vessels and other submerged structures; and consists in fittingtwo revolving brushes within a suitable frame, the axes of the twobrushes being arranged side by side and parallel with each other.

Each brush, in about the center of its length, has a pulley withpreferably a V groove, around which the bight of a rope is caused topass, with the view of not only revolving the brushes when the apparatusis in use, but also to cause the brushes to travel over and so cover thesurface to be acted upon. The brushes also carry at their center anothersheave or pulley, around which an endlss chain or rope is caused to passto connect the two brushes and to insure their revolving simultaneously.

When the apparatus is at work 011 the side of a ship or other submergedstructure in the case of cleaning from water-line to keel, the axes ofthe brushes are preferably horizontal with the water-line. Two doubleropes are used, one passing from the upper brush up to the rail of thevessel, where one end is made fast to an adjustable frame, which cantravel on the rail, and the other end can be attached to the barrel of acrab or winch for hauling on and rotating the brush. A similar rope tothe above is caused to take over the pulley of the lower brush, whenceit is carried under the ships keel, and one end secured to a similaradjustable frame on the opposite rail of the vessel, while the other endof the said rope is attached to a second drum, as before mentioned.

The brushes, which may be formed of bass, cane, or other suitable.material, are preferably constructed in the following manner: The coreor center of the brush is formed of strands of wire, or of rods, twistedtogether after the m anner of a rope, the bass, cane, or other suitablematerial of which the brushes are formed having been previously laid atright angles in regular order between them, the result being that acylindrical brush is formed with the bass or cane in spiral form.

In action, assuming a ship is being cleaned by passing the brushesaround the ships bilge from water-line to keel, the adjustable framesbefore mentioned having been secured in the required position, and thebrush-frame and ropes having been passed under the ships bottom andsecured to the ships rail at each side and to the barrel of the winches,motion is given to one of the winches, which hauls in one end of theropes passing around the pulleys of the brushes. This not only causesthe brush frame to travel over the surface being acted upon, but alsoinsures the revolving of the brushes at the same time, and consequentlythe removal of all accumulations on the ships side or other submergedstructures.

While one end of the ropes encircling the pulley of one brush is beinghauled in, the ropes encircling the pulley on the other brush are beingpaid out, and vice versa, according to the direction of the travel ofthe brush.

The apparatus can be used in either a vertical or horizontal direction,or as desired, and by hand or other power.

The invention will be clearly understood by reference to the annexeddrawings, in which Figure 1 shows a midship section of a vessel with mybrush-frame and brushes fitted, and shown as cleaning a ship from thewater-line to the keel; and Fig.2, aside view of the same. Fig. 3 is aninboard view, showing the winch; and Fig. 4 shows one of the brushes.

A is the vessel; B, the brush-frame. O O are the brushes. D is theendless-chain connection of the two brushes, passing around wheels orpulleys E E on the respective axles of the two brushes. G Gr are thepulleys or drums, around which pass the rotating and hauling ropes H H,the bight of the outer ends of these ropes passing around, and, if needbe, making a complete turn around, the pulleys G, for griping purposes,while the other ends of the ropes are carried up to the'ships rail oneach side, as shown, Where one of them, I, is made fast to the eye K ofthe adjustable frame L, and the other carried over the pulley I andsecured to the barrel of the winch M, the turning of which by the handleN rotates the brushes, and also causes them to traverse a portion of thevessels outer skin, by which process the part they pass over iseffectually cleaned.

It will be observed that the vessel to be cleaned may be provided with awinch, as shown on the right of Fig. 1, on each side, which istemporarily secured at the spot opposite to where the ships side is tobe acted upon; or the ropes H H may be hauled upon or paid out by hand,as arranged on the left of Fig. 1. and supposin g the apparatus, as awhole, to be in position for being put in operation and the brush-frameabout the level of the water at P, the winch-barrel on the opposite sideof the ship, when winches are used, is turned by the handles N N, whichhauls in its rope and draws the bruslrframe from the water-line, at 1,down to the keel, cleaning the ships side as it progresses. During thedownward travel of the brush-frame it is evident that the winch on thatsidethat is, the brush side-is turned in the reverse direction to thewinch on the opposite side, so as to allow the rope to pay out and thebruslrframe to descend.

In my invention l secure the performance of the two co-ordinatefunctions of rotating the brushes and advancing them in the path oftheir work by the use of the same appliances-to wit, the ropes H H,operating in conjunction with the rotating brushes C C, connected byendless chain or rope D--thus avoiding the use of two independent setsof chains or ropes, one to govern the travel of the brushframe, andanother and independent mechanism to actuate the rotary brush.

hen the brushes have arrived at the ships keel the motion of each winchis reversed, so that the winch which paid its rope out while the brushesare descending becomes the hauling-iu one, and at the same time therevolver of the brushes, and the winch which hauled the brushes down tothe keel becomes the pay ing-out one, by which the brushes are againbrought to the surface of the water, the process of reversing the motionof the winches, as described, being repeated as many times as foundnecessary to pass the brushes over the surface being cleaned.

The winch-frames can be readily secured in the required position bymeans of the screw-legs, serving to jam them against the under side ofthe ships rail, while the adjustable frame L, which carries the eye Kand top guide-roller, is readily fixed and held where required by thelegs a sliding on the bars h, on which the lugs can be held by pinspassing through eyes in their upper ends and through. holes formed inthe bars I) for that purpose. The lugs have a screw-pin, a, passingthrough them and taking under the ships rail, as clearly shown in Fig.1, by which the whole top frame becomes securely fixed.

The brush-fram es are provided with air-bags Q Q, which, so to speak,float them, and thereby render them very easy to handle and manipulatewhen overboard, and at the same time greatly assist the brushes to keepin contact with the surface being operated upon, by which their actionis rendered much more cffeetive.

On reference to Fig. 2, it will be seen that the endless-chainconnection driving the two brushes 0 O is arranged about the center oftheir lengths; but I do not confine myself to this arrangement, as anendless chain or rope can be used, one at each end of the brushes, andinside or outside the brush frame, as found convenient.

The brush-frame is provided with a sort of guide, 1%, through which theropes H II from the winches pass, and by which they are prevented fromslipping off their respective puL leys G G. The frames are also providedwith rollers S S on adjustable legs T T, to regulate the touch of thebrushes on the ships side.

I claim as my invention- 1. The described mechanism for co-ordinatelyproducing the advancing and receding movements of the brush-frame andthe rotary movements of the brushes by means of the same ropes orchains, consisting of ropes H H, passing around pulleys G G upon theaxles of the brushes, having their seieral extremities attached, asdescribed, the whole being operated by a winch or other suitable power,substantially as specified.

2. The described apparatus for cleaning the hulls of vessels and othersubmerged structures, consisting of two or more rotary brushes,connected, as shown, by endless belts or chains, adjusted in a frameadapted to travel over the surface of the structure to be cleaned, whichframe is confined in the path or line of action, and, together with therotary brushes which it carries, have imparted to them their respectiveappropriate motions from the same ropes or chains by which the saidmechanism is confined in its path of duty.

3. The guide It, in combination with frame B and ropes ll I1,substantially as shown and described.

4. The combination of ropes ll IT, bruslr frame B,pulleys G G, brushes 0C, endless belt or chain D, and guide It, operated by a winch or othersuitable mechanism, substantially as described and set forth.

5. The combination of frame 13, equipped with two or more rotarybrushes, connected by endless belts or chains, as hereinbel'ore described and claimed, with air-bags or floats Q Q. the whole beingattached to the vessel or other structure, and the several movementsthereof controlled by the ropes H H, having their ends attached,substantially as described, of which the hauling in and paying out areregulated by any suitable motor located on the deck of the vessel,substantially as described an d set forth.

CHARLES FIELDER.

'Wi tncsses:

E. EDMONDS,

166 Fleet street, London. r T. STURT,

166 Fleet street, vLondon.

